Planned layoffs rise for first time since July: Challenger

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- Planned layoff announcements at major U.S. corporations increased 59% in January, reaching 71,482 from a nine-year low of 45,094 seen in December, according to the latest job-cut tally by Challenger Gray & Christmas.

It was the first month-to-month increase in layoffs since July, the outplacement firm reported Wednesday. The figures are not seasonally adjusted.

Layoff plans ran 70% lower than the 241,749 announced in January 2009, which was a seven-year high.

Planned reductions for last month were led by retail companies, which announced 16,737 job cuts, and telecommunications companies, which cut 14,010 jobs.

Challenger's monthly tally covers only a small fraction of those who lose their jobs each month. Most layoffs are not announced in press releases.

According to the government's most recent report, 2.05 million people lost their jobs via layoffs or terminations in November. Through the first 11 months of the 2009, the government counted 25.6 million layoffs.

By Challenger's count, companies announced 1.288 million job cuts during 2009.

In a separate report, ADP estimated that U.S. private-sector employment fell by 22,000 in January, the fewest jobs lost in two years. The declines have lessened every month since March, when firms cut 736,000 jobs in one month. The report is based on a sample of hundreds of thousands of companies using ADP for their payroll services. See our full story on the ADP employment report.

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